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name
RICE, Roy Leonard Jr - Date of
birth
2 August 1923 -
Age
21 -
Place of birth
Ferndale, Oakland County, Michigan -
Hometown
Oakland County, Michigan
Personal info
Military service
- Service
number
O-824225 -
Rank
Second Lieutenant -
Function
unknown -
Unit
451st Bombardment Squadron,
322nd Bombardment Group, Medium
-
Awards
Air Medal
Death
-
Status
Killed in Action - Date of
death
18 March 1945 - Place of
death
Beauvais, France
Grave
-
Cemetery
American War Cemetery Epinal
| Plot | Row | Grave |
|---|---|---|
| B | 7 | 64 |
Immediate family
-
Members
Roy L. Rice Sr. (father)
Frances R. (Hurst) Rice (mother)
Doris G. Rice (sister)
Ruth Rice (sister)
Alice R. (Johnson) Rice (wife)
More information
2nd Lt Roy L. Rice Jr. was a foreman before he joined the Regular Army in Detroit, Michigan on 2 November 1942.That day, a few minutes after takeoff from the airbase of Beauvais-Tillé for a mission over Germany, the B-26 in which he was flying crashed, caught by the blast of the explosion of two other B-26s which collided whilst getting into formation. This dramatic catastrophe immediately resulted in the death of the crews of the three bombers. Miraculously, the leading pilot of the Squadron, 1st Lt. Alex O. Cordes, survived.
He was first buried at the Temporary American Military Cemetery of Solers, France.
Source of information: Peter Schouteten, www.abmc.gov, www.findagrave.com, www.wwiimemorial.com, www.archives.gov - WWII Enlistment Record, www.ancestry.com - Headstone and Interment Record / Phillips Family Tree / 1930 Census
Photo source: www.findagrave.com - Andy, www.wwiimemorial.com - Alice Rice Johnson, Arie-Jan van Hees, Pilot Class Book 44-B, Georgefield, Illinois